Resolutions and Reflections
by Bridlin
Summary: Set after Secret Santa. Chapter 7 up now. Sadly, I don't own these characters.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Kate stirred and snuggled down further into the bed, her eyes still firmly closed, keeping the day at bay a little longer as she enjoyed the feel of the soft, warm cotton against her bare skin. She rolled over, her long fingers splayed out seeking Castle, but she found only rumpled bedclothes, still warm from the heat of his body. She slid her cheek across to inhale his scent hoping he would return soon, letting herself drift back to sleep.

Something was tickling her cheek. She frowned and swatted at it, relaxing as her fingers were caught in his. She instinctively pulled his hand to her mouth and, not quite awake enough to form a kiss, she held it there, feeling her own breath reflected back from his fingers.

'Good morning, my love,' Castle murmured into her hair and she felt his lips, as soft and warm as the sheets, on her forehead.

'Must've fallen asleep again. Come back to bed, Castle,' she mumbled into his hand.

'Aren't you hungry?' he whispered through her curls.

'Umm, hungry. Can I smell bacon?' She rolled on to her back, releasing his hand, and stretched, elongating her slender form like a cat waking from a particularly satisfying sleep. She opened her eyes a crack, crinkling them into a smile to match the one on Castle's face just inches from hers. He lightly kissed her lips.

'I love watching you wake. You're like a butterfly emerging from a cocoon.'

'Ha! So poetic so early. You've been writing.'

'You know me so well. I've also cooked your breakfast. Sit up before it goes cold.' He slipped a hand under her shoulders and lifted her, propping up the pillows behind her.

'You brought me breakfast in bed?' she said, scooting up to lean against the pillows. She looked around for her nightshirt that had been abandoned during the night but couldn't see any sign of it so she tucked the sheet in under her arms. Castle was pottering around, opening the curtains a few inches to allow in the dappled winter sunlight, his white t-shirt tight across his broad chest showing off the work he had been doing in the gym. He placed a steaming mug of coffee on each bedside table and then gently eased her forward so he could tie a linen napkin securely around her neck.

'Added protection in case that sheet slips,' he said, carefully smoothing the napkin over her breasts.

'Is that really necessary?'

'Absolutely. If that sheet drops down you'll be exposed for all the world to see,' he said, deliberately misunderstanding her.

'So, you're the whole world now? Not narcissistic much. Have you seen my nightshirt?'

She knew that Martha would be completely unfazed if she found her naked in her son's bed but Kate would be mortified, and the thought of Alexis seeing her like this was horrifying. She had never stayed over while Alexis was home until Christmas Eve and she really had no idea what the girl thought about her relationship with her father. Alexis hadn't been either particularly warm or cool towards her but Kate, as the daughter of a single father, tried to put herself in the girl's shoes. How would she feel if a woman came into her own father's life? She understood that the situation was complicated, not least as Alexis had only found out that Kate and her father were together when she was leaving for college. She reached up to tighten the napkin and the sheet dropped to her waist.

'Ah, here it is,' Castle said, pulling the blue nightshirt out from behind the chest of drawers and tossing it towards her, 'I thought I'd thrown it over here somewhere.'

Kate slipped on the shirt and tried to gather her hair away from her face, watching appreciatively as Castle bent down to pick up her breakfast tray from the floor, giving her a great view of his butt in his grey track pants. No VPL, she noticed. He was definitely commando.

'Pancakes, bacon and maple syrup,' he said as he placed the tray on her lap. There were two glasses on the tray, one full of freshly squeezed juice and the other holding a sprig of red-berried holly.

'I didn't have a rose so I got this for you specially,' he said, straightening the stem.

'From the table decoration?'

'Yep.'

'Thank you. So thoughtful. Were you writing another chapter of Derek Storm?' she asked between mouthfuls of pancake.

'Actually, some Nikki Heat ideas. I was feeling inspired.' He did a little eyebrow dance as he sat beside her on the bed, staying on top of the sheets. 'But I was also working on a shopping list.'

'A shopping list? Don't you ever get tired of shopping?' She asked, loading her fork with pancake and bacon and feeding it to him.

Castle loved shopping more than any other man she had ever known and more than most women. He got excited about all sorts of shopping; even a trip to the grocery store was a treat for him. For Kate, most shopping was a chore to be squeezed into the few gaps between work that were also reserved for relaxation like watching a movie or seeing her dad and increasingly, Castle time. One of the side benefits of having Castle in her life was that he kept her fridge well stocked and organised her food cupboards. She looked at him a little warily as he chewed. She hadn't given much thought to how they might spend her day off but shopping was definitely not part of her plan.

'How could anyone get tired of shopping? So many cool gadgets to buy. And today we're going to buy your Christmas presents,' he said eagerly as soon as he'd swallowed.

'My Christmas presents, Castle? It's New Year's Eve.' A dribble of maple syrup escaped from her fork and trickled slowly from the corner of her mouth.

'I know, but now that I realise my foolish mistake of believing that when you said no presents you meant no presents, we should go out together to get you exactly what you want.' He leaned over and sucked the syrup from her chin, following its path with his tongue until he reached her mouth.

'Gross, Castle!' she said, pushing him away with her elbow, 'and no way do you get off that easy. You forget to buy me a present…'

'In my defence…'

She held up her fork, laden with pancake, in front of his face. 'Don't interrupt! You failed to give me a Christmas gift and now you want me to choose my own? No way.'

'But…' she pushed the fork into his open mouth.

'No buts. You missed your chance and now you have to wait until next year.'

'No fair!' he groaned.

'Surely we can think of something to do today other than shopping,' said Kate, picking up her coffee.

'Um. Well I can think of one way we could start the day,' he said, taking the tray and putting it on the floor.

'What could you be thinking, Mr Castle?' Kate gave him a coy look through her lashes.

He twisted back, taking her coffee cup and leaning across her to put it on the table. He paused as he drew back, so she could feel his breath below her ear. She lifted her head, pulling her hair round out of his way but instead of kissing her neck he suddenly jerked his head back so his face was right in front of hers, his eyes bright with excitement.

'Why didn't I think of it before? Let's go up to the Hamptons. You're not on shift until tomorrow afternoon. If we leave now we can have most of the day there and tomorrow morning. Come on. Let's get ready.' He leapt to his feet and tossed back the bedclothes.

'But Martha's going to the Hamptons today,' said Kate, trying to pull the covers back over her.

'No, she's not. She changed her mind and decided to accept that invitation to the Plaza and Alexis is going to her friend's party. Come on, Kate, it'll be fun. We'll have our dinner by firelight and take a walk under the stars.' He turned on his puppy dog eyes but she didn't really need persuading. They'd decided to cook dinner together and watch the fireworks from the loft. Castle couldn't be anonymous in New York on New Year's Eve and they couldn't risk being seen together in public. Kate was fine with that but a night alone in the Hamptons without a murder to interrupt their plans was even more appealing.

'Let's go,' said Kate, swinging her legs to the floor.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

'Are you sure you don't mind if we go now? We could all have lunch together and we could leave this afternoon,' Castle asked Alexis for the third time.

'Dad, just go and have a great time. I've got plenty to keep me busy and I'm leaving for Maria's party at six. You don't need to worry about me. Enjoy the Hamptons. I'll be here when you get back tomorrow.' She ushered him towards the door where Kate was twisting her scarf through her fingers, staying well clear of the father/daughter discussion.

'You're really sure…'

'Dad!'

'Sorry. We're going.' He enveloped Alexis in a big hug and she kissed him on the cheek and then she turned to cuddle Kate too. Despite being caught off-guard, Kate hugged the girl back. She raised her brows at Castle over Alexis' shoulder and he gave her a watery-eyed grin.

'She's really warming to you, Kate. Isn't that great?' he said in the elevator, giving her shoulders a squeeze.

'Yeah, it really is.' She smiled up at him, hoping it was true. She would never want to come between Castle and Alexis so it was very important that the girl accepted her. Privately, she thought that Alexis was glad to see the back of them both today and she wondered what she might be up to. She had no intention of letting Castle know what she thought though. She didn't want anything to stand in the way of their spur of the moment trip and, anyway, Castle needed to learn that his little girl was growing up and needed a bit more space.

As he put their overnight bags and the cool box into the Mercedes, Kate sat in the car and played with his iPod, putting together a playlist for the journey. Castle opened her door and twisted his head down to peer in at her.

'Ah, change of plan I'm afraid' said Castle, holding up his phone screen.

'What? We can't go?' Kate said, her eyes flying to his face.

'No, nothing like that but there's bit of snow forecast. Just an inch or so for the city and the Hamptons hardly ever gets more than a dusting but let's take the SUV just in case. I don't want you becoming all fidgety about getting back in time for your shift.'

'I wouldn't get fidgety,' Kate claimed getting out of the car and Castle raised his brows at her. 'OK, maybe I'd get a bit twitchy. Let's take the SUV.'

'I'll just run up to get the keys.' He trotted back across the garage to the elevator and Kate unloaded the car ready to transfer everything into the black Lexus. She was prepared for a longish wait as she knew he wouldn't be able to resist checking in with Alexis again but he was back in a few minutes.

'Alexis OK?' she asked, tossing her little overnight bag onto the back seat.

'I didn't see her. I called out but I think she must have been in her room. Right, let's get going.' He gave her that wrinkly-eyed smile that always made her feel warm and fuzzy before turning his attention to the job of edging out of the garage into the busy stream of slow moving traffic. A motorbike wove through the cars and turned the corner and Kate had a pang of regret that there weren't doing the same.

By the time they'd reached the junction, the biker had pulled over outside the front of Castle's building and someone in full leathers was getting on behind him, pushing a few strands of unmistakeable long red hair up into her helmet. Kate spun round to look at Castle. He'd seen it too. The look of disbelief on his face confirmed that. He wrenched the wheel and braked so sharply in front of the bike that both of them were thrown forward against their belts.

'Sorry, Kate,' he said, jerking open the door.

'Castle…' she called, but he had already slammed the door. She got out in time to meet him as he strode round to the passenger side of the car on his way to confront the motorcyclists.

'Alexis,' he shouted, his voice high and the two people on the bike looked up in unison.

'What the hell do you think you're doing?' he screeched. The visor was still up on Alexis' helmet and Kate saw her skin drain of its little colour.

'Dad, I…'

'Get off that bike now!'

'Dad, please…'

'Castle,' Kate said quietly, her hand on his arm.

'Now, Alexis!'

Kate tightened her grip and tried to drag him away but he resisted.

'Please, Rick.' Her voice, hardly more than a whisper, got through to him and he let her lead him towards the entrance to the loft, his eyes not leaving his daughter.

'She's on a motorbike with some… biker, dressed in leathers. How could she do this?'

'You should be pleased.'

'What?' He looked at her for a moment as if she'd lost her mind before returning his attention to the girl who had now dismounted but still wore her helmet.

'She's properly dressed. They both are. I saw him round the corner, Castle. He was driving very carefully through the traffic. And you've got to admit, he doesn't exactly look like a Hell's Angel.' The young man was standing beside Alexis, helmet in hand, nervously running his fingers through his neatly cut blonde hair.

'She lied to me,' he said, through clenched teeth.

'No she didn't. She just didn't tell you. Did you tell your mum everything you were doing at her age? I sure as hell wasn't telling my dad. She's grown up, Rick. She can do what she wants. Give her space or you'll push her away.' She lightened her grip on his arm but kept her eyes on his face. He glanced down and gave her a sad smile and covered her hand with his before walking calmly forward.

'You didn't mention you were going out, Alexis.' His face was stern but his tone was moderate.

'No, I… Dad, this is Max. We're just going to have lunch,' she said, a flush returning some colour to her cheeks.

'I'm pleased to meet you, sir.' Max pulled off his glove and held out his hand and Castle instinctively shook it. 'We're going to Benny's Diner, sir. It's just a few blocks away…'

'Yes, I know where Benny's is,' cut in Castle, 'it's a nice place for lunch,' he added catching the nervousness on the boy's face.

'I'll bring Alexis right back afterwards. There's snow forecast for later and I promised my parents that I won't ride in the snow.'

'Text me when you get to the diner, and when you get home,' said Castle.

'I will, Dad.' They got back on the bike and as Castle turned back to the car, Alexis mouthed a silent thank you to Kate who was standing just behind him. Kate gave her a toothless grin and a nod and climbed back into the SUV.

Castle straightened the vehicle, allowing the motorcycle out and they watched Alexis give a little wave as the young couple drove slowly past. Kate kissed him lightly on the cheek.

'Well done,' she said, her hand on his knee.

'I thought it would be easier as she got older, not harder. What happened to my little girl in her pink tutu?' he said, rejoining the traffic his bottom lip sticking out.

'She grew up into a lovely young woman thanks to having a loving and caring – if occasionally irresponsible – father. You're lucky, Castle. Of course she's going to push the boundaries but she's well grounded.'

'Thank you - for calming me down.'

'I had an ulterior motive. If you'd grounded Alexis we wouldn't have left the city and I'm really looking forward to our night in the Hamptons.' She slid her hand up to his thigh and he jerked the wheel.

'Mind on the road, Castle,' she said, releasing him.

* * *

The sky was overcast when they reached the house but Kate didn't mind. For some reason that she couldn't quite identify, she felt more at home with Castle in the Hamptons than anywhere else, even though they'd only spent a couple of days there together. The last time she'd arrived here she'd been overawed by the beauty of this place and weighed down by its past. It was Castle's territory; a part of his life that she'd only known of as where he sometimes came to write, the place where he'd spent the summer with Gina two years ago. This time she wasn't worried about other women who'd been there before. They were part of his back-story and she couldn't do a thing about them any more than Castle could rewrite her life leaving out Josh, Demming and her other old boyfriends. That was their history but Castle was her present and she had no doubt that she was his. And boy, did she have plans for their present.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

'Domestic goddess,' Kate said leaning against the kitchen island, watching Castle prepare their lunch.

'Huh?' He swung a foot behind him to close the refrigerator door as he pulled the cork from a bottle of red wine.

'You are a domestic goddess.' She took the wine he offered and cupped it in her hands, gently swilling it around the glass.

'Ah, I think you mean domestic god.' He twirled on his heel, his purple "Keep Calm And Bake Cup Cakes" apron fanning out around him.

'Hmmm, I don't know, Castle. You are a bit of a girl,' she said, turning her head a little and giving him an assessing look.

'Really? A girl? You do remember last night, don't you?' He put his hands on his hips and thrust forward.

'OK, a bedroom god but a domestic goddess,' she said, smiling over the wine glass she held to her lips.

'I'll accept that. Thank you. We have cheese, prosciutto, olives, grilled red peppers, a very sexy salad and ciabatta. Oh, and a rather fantastic Chianti Classico but you already know that.' He slipped off his apron and they clinked glasses before ferrying the food to the table.

'I mean, look at this. I leave you alone for five minutes…'

'To change into a very fetching outfit,' he interrupted, his eyes ranging slowly up her tight black jeans to the low v-necked red sweater that revealed just enough of the rise of her breasts to be tantalising.

'and you've set table fit for a…,' she hesitated, trying to think of an appropriate analogy.

'A detective?' he offered, lighting the candles he'd arranged in a sea of white of white rose petals. It was the middle of the day but the sky was leaden and the candlelight gave a warm glow to the room.

'A bard! You'd think that Shakespeare was joining us for lunch.'

'"Shall I compare thee to a Summer's day?" Of course, it's not summer but… Ooh, I know! "Thou knowest, winter tames man, woman, and beast,"' he said in his best Richard Burton impersonation. Kate rolled her eyes at his obvious self-satisfaction.

'Do you know which play that's from?' he asked, dropping into the chair beside her and serving her some prosciutto.

'I do. Are you calling me a shrew?' She tilted her head to one side and lifting her chin in challenge.

'Never. Just "the prettiest Kate in Christendom".' He smiled, clearly pleased with such a smooth recovery.

'Which makes you boastful, selfish Petruchio I suppose. Well, if the tights fit… Do you think I need taming, Castle?' She picked up an olive and held it to her parted lips, her tongue visible between her perfect white teeth.'

'I er, think um…' He swallowed, watching as Kate slowly caressed the olive with her tongue. 'What, er, was the question?'

Kate laughed. 'I think we were discussing how you'd look in tights.'

'We were? At the risk of sounding as boastful as Petruchio, I think you'll agree that at least I wouldn't need a spare pair of socks.' He glanced down at his lap.

'OK, Big Rick, I'll give you that. So, what do you say to a little afternoon taming?' She popped the olive into her mouth and rolled it around, chewing off the flesh before blowing out the stone through her pursed lips.

'You can tame me any time of day you like, Detective Beckett,' he said leaning towards her. Kate opened her lips ready to meet his but pulled back, her head up and alert.

'What was that?' she said, looking around.

'I didn't hear anything,' he said, leaning in again.

'Shhh! Listen. It sounds like a baby.' She stood up and walked around the room, head cocked.

'A baby? I don't hear… Ah! Look.' He pointed to a little ginger cat scratching at the patio door.

'Oh, poor little thing. It's so cold out there and it sounds hungry. We have to let it in,' she said, unlocking the door.

'Really? It looks pretty happy to me.'

She turned to look at him, one hand on the door handle, the other on her hip. 'Hey, you're the one who said winter tames man, woman and beast. This is our beast. And it's beginning to snow. Please.'

She knew he had no defence against her pleading and she kept her eyes on him as she opened the door. The cat sprinted in past Kate, tail up, and immediately started rubbing its head against Castle's leg.

'It loves you, Castle. How cute is that?' Castle bent down and stroked the little cat who rolled over, exposing its tummy for a rubbing.

'He's very cute, Kate, but he can't stay in. He probably belongs to one of my neighbours.'

'Castle, your nearest neighbours are miles away. Well, maybe not miles, but the nearest houses are locked up. And look! It's beginning to snow. It's hardly more than a kitten. You can't put it out in this weather.'

'Him, it's probably a he.' Castle tickled the cat's tummy and it stretched out, pawing at the air with its front feet.

'It is?' She bent down to join him, stroking the little thing between the ears.

'He is.'

'How do you know? Have you had cats?'

'Research. I thought about writing a children's book when Alexis was little.'

'Sweet.'

'Yeah. It would have been a real hit with the moms in the playground.' He smiled to himself then caught a glimpse of the death stare Kate was giving him. 'Anyway, I gave up on the idea but not before I discovered that about three quarters of orange cats are male.'

'What were you going to call your cat?'

'George.'

'Bernard Shaw?'

'Orwell.'

'Nice. I'm going to get George something to eat.'

'Kate, we can't name him and he's not staying,' he said, as she headed off to raid the kitchen. He heard cupboards opening and closing.

'Do you think he'd prefer tuna, salmon or sardines?' she called.

'You're a very sweet little chap, aren't you, George? I happen to have a bit of a soft spot for redheads, you know,' Castle whispered, getting comfortable on the floor beside the cat.

Kate stopped, tuna on a plate in one hand, and watched him stretched out on the floor, supporting himself on his elbow, stroking George – because whatever Castle said this cat was forever George for her – and talking to him. She knew that, whether she'd been there or not, Castle wouldn't have left him out in the cold. He was as soft-centred as liquid caramel. George righted himself and ran to her. She put down the food and he tucked in, purring as he ate.

'That's right. Just abandon me as soon as she offers you my food. Kate, he's too friendly to be a stray. He belongs to someone so don't get too attached,' he said, looking at her with concern.

'I know, Castle, but he's cute and hungry and it's cold outside. Come on. Let's finish our lunch.' She reached out a hand to help him up.

* * *

Kate was stretched out on the couch, her head resting on Castle's thigh, her book abandoned in favour of the mesmerising flames of the wood fire. Castle was reading the latest James Patterson, the fingers of his free hand intertwined with hers. The snow had continued to fall steadily throughout the afternoon and evening and had covered everything with a virginal white blanket. They'd walked down to the sea after lunch, wrapped up in scarves and hats and each other, accompanied part of the way by George who had leapt in the air when his feet first touched the snow, shaking his paws. After a few tentative sniffs he followed them, quickly learning he could avoid the deeper snow by jumping in their footsteps, but he soon tired of that game and disappeared back the way they had come.

'That's probably the last we'll see of him, Kate. Don't be too disappointed if he's not around when we get back,' Castle had said, but he had taken them on a detour through the town to get a few cat supplies – just in case. The pet store owner hadn't heard of any missing cats but he took Castle's number in case he did. There was no sign of George at the house and Castle said he'd just check round outside. He'd come in dejected and cold. He said he hoped the little fella had found his way home. Ten minutes later his face had creased into a joyful grin at the sound of George at the patio door. George had made himself comfortable on an easy chair, watching with interest as Castle set the fire and Kate started preparations for their dinner. Now the little ginger ball of fluff was curled up on the hearth rug looking very much at home.

'Penny for them,' Castle said, putting down his book.

'Huh?' she said, roused from her revelry.

'Your thoughts. A penny for them.' He ran his fingers through her mane of hair.

'I was just thinking about how much everything has changed in the last year.'

'Yeah. An incredible year.'

'I wonder what the next year will bring.' She tilted her head back to look up at him.

'I don't know but I'm looking forward to it.' He bent down to kiss her forehead.

'Yeah. Me too.' Her face crinkled into a smile and she sat up beside him, keeping hold of his fingers so that his arm was around her waist.

'So, you got any New Year resolutions?' she asked him.

'Same as always. Meet my deadlines, don't over-react to anything Alexis does, no playing with my X-Box when I've got work to do.'

'Ah, so you go for the one week resolution system.'

'Two days is my best so far. What about you?'

'I don't usually bother but I might make one this year.'

Castle raised his brows in a question.

'Not telling,' she said, kissing him lightly on the lips.

'That's not fair. I told you mine. I think you need some taming after all.' He tightened his hold on her so that her mouth was so close to his, she could feel his breath on her lips.

'And you think you're the man to tame me?' she murmured into his mouth.

'Oh yeah.' He sank his fingers into her hair and pulled her head forward, kissing her firmly. He was just forcing his tongue between her lips when his phone rang.

'Leave it,' Kate moaned, opening her mouth for him.

'Might be Alexis,' he mumbled, picking up the call without looking at the screen.

'Castle,' he said twisting his mouth away from Kate's and inhaling sharply as she transferred her attention to his ear lobe.

'Ah ha. Oh. Right.' Kate felt him tense and sat up to look at him.

'OK. No, it's fine. I'll come now. I wouldn't want her to have to wait.' He put the phone down and turned sad eyes to Kate.

'What's wrong?'

'That was the pet store owner. He got a call from a friend whose ginger cat is missing. Their daughter is distraught.' They both turned to look at George.

* * *

'Are you sure I can't offer you a warm drink before you go?' The woman was smiling warmly at them, holding George tightly in her arms.

'Jessica will be so happy when she wakes up to find Molly on her bed. She sobbed herself to sleep. Thank you, Mr Castle. And so kind of you to come out in this weather, Mrs Castle. You obviously understand what it's like when your child is upset.'

Kate's eyes flew to Castle's face. 'I'm not…' she started, then just shrugged, passing through the door he was holding open. 'Happy New Year, Mrs Johnson.'

'Happy New Year,' she called, waving them off.

They rushed back to the car, collars up against the snow. They said little on the short journey, Castle concentrating on driving through the snow that was coating the windscreen in big flakes between each swipe of the wipers.

'Molly, huh?' said Kate, lighting candles as Castle put another log on the fire, rekindling the embers with the poker.

'I did say probably a him,' he said, and they both dropped on to the couch. Kate covered his hand with hers and gave it a squeeze.

'I don't really like cats anyway,' he said, returning the pressure of her fingers. Kate looked at him disbelievingly.

'George was different. He – or she – was more like a dog.'

'Oh. Well you won't want this then.' Kate held up a scrap of paper.

'What is it?' He reached for it but she snatched it away and shoved it into one of the back pockets of her jeans.

'Just the number of the man who owns George's – or Molly's – mother. Apparently she's a very bad girl and she sleeps around a lot. She's pregnant again.'

'Really. You'd better give that to me for safe-keeping. I wouldn't want you to be tempted to ring him.' He tugged her towards him and delved into her pocket with her fingers kneading her cheek gently. Kate leant against him, pushing him down on to the couch, twisting as he dropped so that she that she was straddling him.

'And you know all about bad girls, don't you Beckett?'

He pulled the paper from her pocket and dropped it on to the table behind him before taking her hips in her hands and pulling her down harder onto him. She started to slowly unbutton his shirt, bending to kiss his chest, rocking her hips gently against his. He moaned, sliding his hands under her sweater to cup his breasts in his hands. He rubbed his hands across her bra against her hard nipples and she felt his abdomen muscles tense as he lifted his head towards hers.

'"Kiss me Kate"'. His voice was gravelly with desire and she met his open mouth.

'Still quoting Shakespeare,' she gasped, when they broke apart briefly for air.

'My favourite of all his lines.' He slid down a little so he could reach her neck with his mouth. 'I'm making one extra resolution this year,' he said, as he licked and kissed his way down to the hollow at the base of her throat.

'What's that?' Kate asked, lifting herself onto her knees to unbuckle his belt.

'To do this a lot.' He ran his hands up inside her sweater and she lifted her arms for his arms so he could pull it off.

'You better keep that resolution, Castle. Don't forget that I've got a gun,' she said as the grandfather clock in the hall chimed midnight.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

'Too early, Kate. Go back to sleep.' Castle mumbled without opening his eyes.

'Castle, you have to wake up now. It's snowing.'

'Oh, pretty, but I'll look later.' He pulled the sheet up to his chin, covering his arms.

'Castle, please wake up. I think it's been snowing all night. It's really deep.'

He grunted and rolled over, sinking his face into the goose down pillow.

'Hey, what's happening?' he said clutching for the sheet that was rapidly disappearing. Left completely naked on the bed, he rubbed his eyes and sighed before he sat up. The fire had burnt itself out but the house was well heated and the bedroom was warm.

'You know I like to be woken gently, Kate. A kiss is nice, ripping the covers off not so nice.'

'Did you hear what I said? The snow is really deep. I think we might be stuck here.'

Castle focussed on her at last. She was standing over him, looking adorable as she always did in the morning. Her hair was wild and she had pulled on one of his T-shirts. It was, of course, much too big and had slipped off one shoulder. If she weren't chewing her lip so hard he would have pulled her down on top of him.

'Don't worry. We won't be stuck. It never snows much in the Hamptons and we've got the SUV.'

'Castle, it's so deep I can hardly even see the SUV.'

'Maybe you looked out the wrong window. I parked it at the front…'

'I know where you parked it. Right now it looks like a snow monster,' snapped Kate.

He sighed again and reluctantly got out of bed to look out of the window. 'Crap, there must be over a foot of snow out there.'

'I told you. What are we going to do?' She came to stand beside him and he put his arm round her, giving her a squeeze.

'Hey, don't fret. We'll get out and if not, well we can usually think of something to keep us busy.' He dipped his chin and raised his brows but instead of the smile he'd hoped for, she twisted out of his grip.

'This is serious. I have to get back to the city. Get your clothes on so we can see how bad it is. Where are my jeans?' She searched under the comforter that, at some time in the night, had ended up in a heap on the floor.

'You won't find them there. You definitely didn't have them on when we reached the bedroom,' he said, choosing a sweater from his closet.

'Oh yeah, that's right. Must be downstairs.' He followed her out of the room, pulling on sweatpants as he walked.

The snow had almost stopped but it looked like the damage was done. There wasn't a glimmer of green, blue or grey outside, only shades of white with no clear distinction between sky, sea and land. Stranded in a very comfortable house in the snow alone with Kate Beckett was the stuff of his dreams and he was tempted to suggest that they just relax and enjoy their forced seclusion but she was frowning and fretting as she found her discarded clothing and he knew she was a long way from relaxing.

'It looks worse than it is. The wind has probably blown the snow up here and the road may be fine. I'll go and check.' He pulled on his boots and Kate picked up her coat.

'I'll go. You wait here. I've got a closet full of clothes but you haven't. No sense in both of us getting soaked.' She nodded agreement and stood in the open doorway hugging herself against the cold and watched him wade through knee high snow. As he got closer to the road, the snow got deeper and the drive steeper.

'Be careful, Castle,' he heard her call and lifted his arm in acknowledgement.

'This is _so_ not good,' he mumbled to himself. There was so much snow he couldn't even work out exactly where the road was. Nothing was moving and the silence was complete. They weren't going anywhere today. It was harder work getting back up the drive and he nearly lost his footing a couple of times; his pants and boots were wet through by the time he reached the SUV. There was no way they were going to dig the vehicle out and nowhere to go even if they did.

'The road is completely blocked. We can't get out, Kate,' he said, staggering up the steps.

'But we have to get out. I've got to go to work and you've got that benefit with the mayor tonight, remember?'

'Let's see what they're saying on the news,' he said shivering, as he took off his wet clothes.

CNN was not encouraging. The unexpectedly heavy snow that had hit the Eastern Seaboard had caused chaos. Roads were blocked, phone lines were down, and more snow was expected in the next few hours. Kate continued to worry at her bottom lip while they watched the television. Castle handed her a coffee and she thanked him but kept her eyes on the screen.

'We should never have left the city.' She climbed onto a stool at the counter and took a bite of the toast he'd buttered for her.

'I'm sorry, Kate. If I'd had any idea about the weather I wouldn't have suggested coming up here.' He knew well that his Kate was a worrier and she didn't feel comfortable in situations where she wasn't in control. He also knew that a sign of her trust in him was that she let him take control sometimes and this time he felt he'd let her down. If he hadn't had this crazy idea she wouldn't be stressed now and he really hated to see her stressed. He hadn't realised that he was drumming his fingers on the counter until her hand reached out to still them. She was looking at him intently, her head to one side

'Hey, I really, really want to be able to blame you. You can't imagine how much I'd love to be able to put this at your door. But I was as keen to come here as you were and I've had a great time, so it's not your fault, OK?' Castle linked his fingers with hers. They could read each other so well now it was almost scary.

'I'll tell Gates that… What shall I tell Gates?' She looked to him for help.

'You'll tell her that you're visiting a friend out of town and got stranded because of the snow. It has the advantage of being true. You are visiting me and I am your friend. It just happens that I came with you to visit me and I'm a friend with major benefits.' He nodded at her reassuringly and she crinkled her eyes at him. Not quite a smile but almost.

'Yeah, that's great. She won't know that we're here together.' She pulled her phone out of her pocket just as it pinged. Castle received an SMS at the same time and they both checked their messages.

'What the…' 'Who sent…' they exclaimed together. Their eyes met.

'Have you just got a photo of us?' Castle asked and Kate nodded.

'Kissing?' She nodded again.

'I don't recognise the number. Do you?' She shook her head

'No. It's not in my contacts. I didn't get a message with it. You?' she asked, putting the phone down quickly as if it might burn her.

'No. Look at the background. It's the break room.'

'Someone at the precinct took that photo. But who? I've got most of their numbers on my phone.' She peered at the image. 'When was that?'

'Hard to say. As you know, there's been more than one occasion when you haven't been able to keep your hands off me.' He flicked his eyebrows up and down at her and was rewarded with the first real smile of the day before concern clouded her face again.

'Who could have sent it?' She started to chew at her knuckle.

'And why no message?' He poured them both a fresh coffee.

'Blackmail?' she suggested, looking unconvinced.

'Blackmailers want something. There'd be a message.'

'Maybe it's Gates. She's telling us she knows.' Kate jumped up from the stool and started pacing the kitchen.

'But it's not her number, Kate, and why would she do that? Subtlety isn't her style. If she knew, she would confront us. Maybe someone just thought it was a cute photo – and you have to admit it is a cute photo.'

She rolled her eyes at him. 'Only Kevin and Javi know about us and it's neither of their numbers. And, anyway, they wouldn't do this. They'd send a message.'

'I know when this was! It was after we solved the tree-surgeon chain-saw case. We'd had a very exciting time at the murder board and you got all hot for me…'

'Excuse me! You got all hot for me…'

'We got all hot for each other. Anyway, we went for a coffee and…'

'Yes, I remember but that doesn't help us find out who sent this or why. Anyway, I can't think about that now. I'd better phone Gates and get it over with.' She dialled the Captain but got a no connection tone. 'Castle, have you got a signal?' she asked, looking at her screen.

'Er, no.' He walked towards the sitting room, holding up his phone and Kate went in the other direction.

'The landline is dead,' Kate called out and he heard her walking up the stairs.

He couldn't get a signal anywhere on the ground floor. He guessed that the nearest mast had come down and that it must have just happened or they wouldn't have received those photos. If he walked up behind the garages he'd be higher and might pick up another mast. It was a long shot but was worth a try. He pulled on his damp boots but didn't bother with his coat – he was only going to be a minute. The snow was beginning to fall again and the cold wind was cutting straight through his sweater. As he hurried round the corner of the garage block, holding his phone high in his right hand, his legs flew out in front of him and he screamed with pain as he hit the ground hard on his left side. He lay still for a moment, recovering his breath. His ankle hurt but that was nothing compared to the agony of his arm. He tried to get up but couldn't get any traction on the icy ground.

'Kate!' he shouted, but he knew it was pointless. She'd never hear him from the house. The cold was seeping through him and he knew he had to move. Using his right arm he managed to get himself into a sitting position and he tentatively flexed his left foot, sucking air in through his teeth at the pain. Not broken, he hoped, but it wasn't going to take his weight. He decided not to look at his arm. The pain was excruciating; looking at it wasn't going to help. Walking was going to be difficult but he thought he'd manage it with the support of the wall. He took a deep breath and pushed up with his good arm and leg and was nearly upright when he lost his footing and came down hard on his damaged arm. He screamed again before passing out.

Castle lay motionless on his back, the snow starting to settle on him like a scattering of confetti.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Kate sat on the bed. Nothing. No signal anywhere. So, what happened now? She was marooned in the snow with Castle in this fantastic house. She allowed herself a little grin and thought back to before they got together and how she used to sometimes let herself fantasize about being with him. This wasn't a scenario she'd thought of but she could see it had a lot of potential. She gave herself a little shake and stood up to make the bed. They often made the bed together these days though that occasionally led to something else and then they'd have to make the bed again. She shook out the comforter and her panties dropped to the floor. The New Year had started with a bang. Maybe she should call him… No! She had serious issues to consider. That could wait until later, but not too much later.

So, they couldn't get out, they couldn't contact anyone and nobody could contact them. She tried to imagine what would happen later that day in the city. Alexis and Martha knew where they were. They would have seen the news and would know that they were safe but stranded and they wouldn't panic. Javi and Kevin would try to call her when she didn't show up at the precinct. When they couldn't reach her they'd call Castle and they'd find out from Martha what had happened. She could trust them to cover for her with Gates. If her Dad was trying to reach her, he'd know to call the loft too so he'd be fine. That just left the benefit Castle was supposed to attend with the Mayor. Alexis would remember and would take care of that. So what did she have to worry about? Something was nagging at her. The photograph! Who sent it? Why? She took her phone out of her pocket and had another look. It was actually very cute. Whatever was going on she had no way of finding out. She shrugged and remembered her New Year's resolution: accept the past - his and hers - and enjoy their present while looking forward to their future. She smoothed the brown and cream silk comforter. The bed looked very inviting. Maybe this was a good time to start enjoying the present.

Castle was being unusually quiet. He was generally a walking stream of consciousness, sharing his every thought, however inappropriate, with her. When he was quiet it tended to mean one of two things; he was writing or, like a puppy, he was doing something he shouldn't. She wandered from the kitchen to the dining room and living room, enjoying the clean lines and beauty of the house, hoping to catch him off-guard. She stopped when she circled back to the staircase and frowned. Where the hell was he?

'Castle?' she called. There was no reply so she called again. It was a big house but surely he must have heard her. 'Castle!' she shouted.

A knot formed in her gut. Something was wrong. She couldn't imagine what might have happened to him but she knew he was in danger. The hallway darkened as the snow closed in again. Snow! Had he gone outside? No, his coat was here – but not his boots. She snatched open the front door. One set of footprints, leading down the drive and back, was rapidly disappearing under the fresh snow but there was a second, recent set leading just one way, towards the garages. She grabbed her coat and pulled on her boots. City boots, not made for snow but at least they were flat.

'Castle,' she shouted, as she stumbled through the snow. She could feel the panic rising as she followed his trail. She turned the corner of the garage and nearly stumbled over his prone body.

'Oh my God. Castle? Rick?' She fell on her knees beside him, brushing the snow from his face. 'Castle, please.' She cupped his cheeks in her hands and put her face close to his, fighting back the desire to cry. Relief flooded her when she felt his breath on her lips. 'Castle,' she dragged her eyes away from his face to check for obvious injuries. Even through his sweater, she could see his forearm was misshapen.

'Kate?' he murmured, 'I knew you'd come.'

'Castle, what happened?' She stroked his icy cheek, and he opened his eyes, startlingly blue in his deathly pale face.

'I fell.'

'You must have hit your head. Don't try to move.' He was lying perfectly still and she was filled with dread that he'd damaged his neck or spine.

'No, just my arm. I tried to get up but I fell on the arm again and I must have passed out. My head's fine but I'm so cold.' He was shivering and she took off her coat and put it over him. It hardly covered more than his chest but he smiled his gratitude at her.

'We have to get you up, Castle. Do you hurt anywhere else?'

'My left ankle. That's why I couldn't get up.'

'OK, Rick, this is what we're going to do. I'm going to help you sit up and then we're going to get you up.'

She flinched as he cried out in pain when she sat him up and she wrapped her coat long ways round his shoulders. She allowed him a few moments before the much more difficult job of getting him on to his one good leg. She knew that their biggest worry right now was the cold. With no way to get help quickly, she had to get him into the house, even if that meant causing him more pain.

Very slowly, she helped him inch up, holding him tight so he wouldn't fall again. As soon as he was upright, she regretted that she hadn't got the garage keys.

'No good. Not heated,' Castle told her through gritted teeth. He draped his uninjured arm over her shoulders and very slowly, with frequent stops, they edged back to the house.

At last, Kate eased him on to the couch, laying him down gently. He was frighteningly pale, his lips blue tinged and pinched. She set about making him as comfortable as possible, gently peeling off the wet clothes and covering him in warm blankets. She propped his head on one of his luxurious pillows and made him a sweet tea that she forced him to drink. Gradually his colour improved and he dropped off to sleep.

While he slept, she set the fire and then sat on the floor, watching his face and wondering what she should do now. She checked for probably the hundredth time for signal on the phones. His ankle was badly swollen and she'd had to cut through his wet boot with a Stanley knife to remove it. By comparison, his sweater had been easy to cut off, but it had revealed a much more worrying injury. His arm was a sickening L-shape and she was glad that Castle had chosen to look the other way. She could bandage his ankle but the bone in his arm needed to be repositioned and she was terrified she'd have to do it. NYPD officers were trained in first aid. She knew what she'd have to do and she thought she'd be able to do it for a stranger in need but the idea of putting Castle through that much pain turned her stomach. He had been almost silent since she got him upright, biting the inside of his lip to stop himself from groaning or worse as she'd undressed him. Her eyes filled with tears at the thought that she'd have to make it worse. She stroked his cheek gently and pressed her lips to his forehead.

A knock on the door startled her and she jumped to her feet, heady with the thought of rescue. She opened the door to a blessedly familiar face.

'Chief Brady! Thank God!' She fell on him, hugging him tightly.

'Well, Detective Beckett, I'm very pleased to see you too,' he said, returning the hug despite his obvious surprise.

'Oh, Chief Brady, I need your help. Where's your car?' she said dragging him into the living room.

'No cars out in this, Detective. Snow shoes. I left them at the door,' he said as Kate's eyes flew to his feet.

'But we've got to get Castle to a hospital.' She dropped the Chief's arm and fell to her knees beside the couch.

'What's wrong?' he said, taking out his radio.

* * *

Chief Brady brought Kate a cup of machine coffee and sat beside her in the waiting room.

'Thank you so much. I really don't know what I would have done without you,' she smiled at him.

'Happy to help, Detective Beckett or should I say Mrs Castle?'

'What?' She spluttered over her coffee.

'Mrs Johnson told me Mr and Mrs Castle had brought her cat back so I assumed…'

'No, we're not married.' She shook her head.

'Oh good, I was hoping I might get an invitation,' he said with a grin.

Kate just opened and closed her mouth, not sure what to say.

'That's why I called round. Thought I should check on everyone. Make sure everything was OK.'

'Thank you. And who would have thought that you'd have a snowplough here.' She put down the foul coffee, hoping he wouldn't notice that she'd only had a taste.

'I know. Vinnie the Scar bought it for the town the last time we had snow. We've never used before. It's waiting outside to take you back. Oh, there he is,' he said pointing to Castle emerging from x-ray in a wheelchair.

'Hey, you look a lot better,' she said running to meet him, her face crinkled into the biggest of smiles.

'Yeah, this hospital gown is such a good look for me. Especially when I stand up and you get a great view of my butt.' He reached out for her hand and linked his fingers through hers. 'You want to join me while they pull my arm apart? I believe it's a wonderful spectator sport.'

'Thank you so much. That's the best offer I've had all day.'

Kate held his hand in both of hers as the orthopaedic surgeon, aided by a nurse, repositioned his arm. He'd been pumped full of drugs but not enough to kill all sensation. As the doctor pulled and twisted she watched Castle close his eyes and bite his lip and she tightened her grip on his hand, wishing she could take the pain away. When it was over and his cast - he chose pink - was fitted, she dressed him in the clothes that she'd brought for him.

'Nice. Red track pants and green T-shirt. It'll set a new fashion,' he said, as she tied the unused arm of the grey cardigan in a knot.

'Sorry. sartorial elegance wasn't top of my agenda.'

'Thank you,' he said, his eyes watery.

'Hey, I wouldn't have missed it for the world.' She bent down and kissed his cheek. 'Our limousine awaits, sir.'

* * *

Despite the painkillers, the journey was a trial for Castle. Chief Brady helped him into the living room and promised to drop in to see how he was doing and blushed when Kate gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Kate stoked the fire and then resumed her position sitting on the floor beside him.

'How ya doing?' she asked him, stroking his cheek.

'Thanks to the most amazing woman in the world, I'm doing just fine.' He fingered her curls and smiled.

'Thanks to Chief Brady and his snow shoes.' She knelt to give him a light kiss on the lips.

'Chief Brady didn't find me dying in the snow…'

'You weren't dying, Castle…'

'If you hadn't found me I would have,' he said, seriously.

As she gazed into his eyes in the gentle glow of the fire, the emotion of the day overcame her and Kate Beckett stunned herself and Castle by dissolving into tears.

He held her head and leant forward to kiss her hair.

'Hey, it's OK. A broken arm and sprained ankle. I'll be fine in no time. Back to full working order.'

'I thought…,' she started and then trailed off into incomprehensible sobs.

'Shhh, Kate. All's well that ends well.'

'That's not from Taming of the Shrew,' she sniffed, wiping her cheeks and blowing her nose with a tissue.

'But "Nay come, Kate, come; you must not look so sour" is.'

That earned him a poke on his good arm.

'Ouch! You're taking advantage of an injured man.'

'I am now,' she said, raising herself up on her knees to kiss him firmly on the lips.


	6. Chapter 6

It was a relief when Kate opened her eyes to daylight. She had woken every time Castle had groaned or even stirred and had spent much of the night watching him. Fortunately, the drugs had done their job and he'd had a long, if restless, sleep. The doctor had assured her that there was no sign that he'd hit his head and that he would be able to put weight on his ankle within a few days. Although the broken arm had looked awful, the break was clean and the skin wasn't punctured. His major concern had been whether the combined effects of shock and cold would hit Castle later and he'd suggested that he stay in the little hospital overnight but Castle wouldn't consider it.

'Kate, I have a broken arm and a sprained ankle. That's all. I want to sleep in my own bed with you. Particularly the with you part,' he'd said, making her blush in front of the doctor and Chief Brady. In his medicated state his appropriateness filter, which was never fully functional, had completely failed. Chief Brady had smiled – he really was her new hero – and had given her a radio so she could call him if she was worried.

Her hand hovered over his cheek but she resisted the urge to stoke it or to kiss his head. He was sleeping more peacefully now and she was reluctant to risk waking him so she slipped out of bed and tiptoed out of the room, grabbing her bathrobe on her way to make coffee.

An hour later, she woke in an easy chair to a rhythmic thumping and it took her a few moments to realise it was the sound of Castle descending the stairs. She was on her feet in a second.

'Castle, what are you doing? You should have called me,' she said, running to the staircase to meet him.

'Don't worry, Kate, I'm doing fine.' She had to agree that he seemed to have mastered the art of bouncing down the stairs on his butt. She watched from the hallway, noticing the grimace he tried to disguise as a grin each time he dropped a step.

'You know, this could become a popular way to clean the stairs. You should scoot a bit from side to side. You're not getting into the corners,' she said, trying to distract him from what she guessed was the effect of the vibration on his arm.

'Good plan. I could patent the Richard Castle Stairway Butt Cleaning System or should that be Butt Stairway Cleaning? Umm, needs work.'

Perspiration beaded his forehead by the time he made it down and Kate helped him to his feet, holding him tight while she gave him a good morning kiss.

'How you feeling?'

'Great, though I'd be better if my arm wasn't pink.'

'You did insist,' she said, holding him round his waist with one arm so she could help him to a chair.

'I was also spaced out on some fantastic drugs. Can you imagine how much grief I'm going to get for this?' He draped his good arm over her shoulders but she could tell he was trying to take as much of his own weight as possible.

'Yeah, I can't wait until Ryan and Espo see it.' He squeezed his eyes shut at the thought and Kate gave a shout of laughter as she lowered him onto the couch.

'Next time I break my arm, I'll make sure that I injure the other leg so I can use a crutch and you don't have to carry me everywhere. Thank you. I am sorry to be such a pain.' He looked up at her, taking her hand in his.

'It's OK, Castle. I'll think of ways you can make it up to me.' She raised her brows and grinned at him. 'I'll get you something to eat so you can take more of those magic meds.'

'Any phone signal?' he asked, as she brought in a tray of scrambled eggs and bacon.

'Nothing and the landline is still dead. Lucky that Chief Brady let us use his satellite phone to make some calls. I'm surprised that you don't have one of those, Castle. You are usually Mr Cool Gadget Man,' she said, putting the tray on his lap and sitting on the arm of his chair. 'Shall I feed you?'

'No you won't! Not unless you've got strawberries dipped in champagne. And I don't have a satellite phone – I have two. Wow, you do make the best eggs.'

'Why didn't you say you had sat phones?' She helped herself to a slice of bacon, eating it quickly from her fingers.

'Not much point. They're in the city, in case of nuclear attack.'

'Hmm. Well Chief Brady gave me a radio so we can call him if we need to.' She licked her fingers and blew on them to cool them down.

'I'm going to have to keep an eye on you and Chief Brady. I feel like the guy in the coma in _While You Were Sleeping_ who wakes up to find his brother has stolen his girl.' He picked up a piece of bacon and Kate smacked his hand so he dropped it and she started cutting it into bite-sized pieces.

'Hey, you ate with your fingers, stealing food from a sick man, I might add.'

'It's hot. Just what you need, burn your fingers too. Then you'd be completely in my power.' She looked at him through her lashes.

'And would you abuse that power, Detective? I do hope so,' he played his eyebrows at her and she laughed.

'I most certainly would, Mr Castle. I'd scrub behind your ears and cut your toenails. And steal you bacon,' she said, taking another slice and popping it in her mouth.

'Not exactly what I had in mind,' he said, shifting in his seat, a little frown the only indication that he was uncomfortable.

'And the brother didn't steal the coma guy's girl because she'd never been his.'

'I should have known you'd know the plot inside out. Are there any romcoms that you haven't seen?'

'None worth watching and that's one of my favourites. Maybe I'll watch it with Chief Brady,' She said glancing back at him over her shoulder as she sashayed into the kitchen to get him coffee and medication.

When he'd finished eating, she propped his leg on a stool and sat beside him studying his face while he wasn't looking. She was relieved to see the sparkle back in his deep blue eyes and, although he was still pale, his colour was nearer normal. He'd be fine. She knew he would, but he'd scared her and she was surprised by her own reaction. When she'd seen him on the snowy ground, seemingly lifeless, she had been terrified. Now she needed to find things to keep him occupied and still. Martha's words from the previous day echoed in her ears.

'Oh, you poor dear,' she had said, after she'd spoken to her son and was confident that he wasn't dying, 'he's a terrible patient, particularly if he has to stay still. At least Richard keeps plenty of booze in the house.'

'He's on pretty strong meds, Martha. He can't drink,' Kate had said.

'Not for him, my darling, for you! Trust me. You're going to need it.'

Kate picked up her phone and opened the photo they had both received the day before.

'Hmm, one of my favourite views,' said Castle leaning his head against hers to get a good look.

'We should print it,' Kate said, rubbing her head on his, 'but I wonder who sent it. I asked Kevin but he said it wasn't him or Javi. They're going to try to trace the number and call me back – if we ever get signal again. How about a game?'

She put down the phone and looked at him.

'Always up for a bit of playing around, Kate. I'll do my best,' he said, giving her a cuddle.

'It's OK, Castle, I'm not planning anything too energetic yet. I was thinking about some cards.'

'Strip Snap?'

'I'd like to see you try. Gummy bears.'

'You're on.'

Kate produced a pack of cards from the floor and started to shuffle.

* * *

Castle hardly stirred as Kate lifted his legs onto the couch. The cards and the banter had kept them both occupied for over an hour and when Kate had gone to make them fresh coffee, she'd come back to find him asleep.

'Detective Beckett?' Kate jumped. It took her a few moments to realise that the crackly sound was coming from the radio. 'Detective Beckett, are you there? Over.'

'Hi, Chief Brady.' She picked up the radio and took it to the kitchen so as not to wake Castle.

'How you guys doing? Over.'

'Good, thank you. Castle's much better.' There was a pause. 'Um, over.'

'Great. Listen, Detective, there's more snow on the way. Do you have plenty of food in? Anything you need? Over.'

'We're fine here. Plenty of everything. Don't worry about us, Chief. I guess we won't be getting out of here anytime soon.' Another pause. 'Over.'

'Nothing but essential travel. Roads closed and all aircraft grounded so no, you won't be going anywhere for a while I'm afraid. We may lose power so you'd best check for candles and make sure you've got enough fire wood. I'll try to get out to see you tomorrow. Call if you need anything. You take care now, Detective. Over.'

'Thanks, Chief. Over.' Kate held the silent radio in her hand looking out at the leaden sky. An enforced stay in the Hamptons with Castle wasn't such a bad thing though it would be a lot better if he were fully fit.

'Kate!' He was awake again. Shame. He really needed to get more sleep.

'Coming, Castle. You didn't sleep for long,' she said, surprised to see him sitting up.

'My phone woke me. I got a message.' He held out the cell to her, his mouth in a grim line.

She read out the text: '"Sorry didn't get to meet you both when I was in precinct to see Cap Gates. Writing article for _Heat _about precinct. Snapped this photo as I was leaving. Didn't want to disturb. Think it'll make great cover – human side of policing. Pls let me know if you don't want me to use. Go to press on 3 Jan. If don't hear from you by 2nd will assume OK. Best Peter McDonald." Castle, today's the 2nd. What are we going to do?' She bit her lip as she ran her hand through her hair.

'I'll call him now.' He took the phone back and dialled. 'Damn, lost signal again. What about you?'

Kate checked her own phone. She'd received the same message. 'No bars. Nothing on landline either.' As she spoke the lamp on the table beside them went out. They'd lost power.

**Sorry it has taken me so long to update this story. I got side-tracked by my take on what should have happened after Significant Others. Do read Seeds of Significance if you have time (rated M for last chapter). Let me know if you think this story is worth continuing. East coast snow inspired me to write some more. I'm always grateful for your views. **


	7. Chapter 7

'Who is Peter McDonald anyway?' Kate asked. She was stacking firewood by the hearth while Castle watched, clearly frustrated that she'd gone outside to the wood store and that he hadn't been able to help.

'Don't know him but I've heard the name. Writes features for _Heat_ but I've never read anything by him. The only Heat I'm interested in is Nikki. It's odd. It just doesn't seem like the sort of thing that Gates would agree to. She's not exactly the star struck type.' He was trying to twist sheets of the newspaper he'd asked her to pass to him into tight screws to help kindle the fire but only succeeded in ripping it up as he tried to secure one end under his cast and twist with the other hand.

'Right. Because she doesn't fall at your feet.' Kate rolled her eyes at him. 'But you're right about it being odd. She can't have been given a choice. It's the only explanation. But what can we do about it, Castle? If that photo appears…'

'No phones, no Internet, no power; Kate, we only have one way to contact the outside world and that's through your friend Chief Brady. I don't get why you won't ask him to make a call. I'm sure he'd do anything for you.'

That earned him another eye roll and a deep sigh. They'd had this conversation already. Chief Brady had next to no resources to deal with all the problems associated with this snowfall. She couldn't ask him to make drop everything to make a call about this.

'I've told you why. He's probably out rescuing old ladies from freezing houses and digging mothers and children out of snowdrifts. I can't ask him to stop that over something this… trivial.' She sat back on her heels and pulled off her gloves.

'Trivial? If this is trivial why are you stressing so much? And you forgot saving puppies. I'm sure your Chief is doing that too. And kittens and baby rabbits.' He made a final attempt to make a paper twist by wedging it under his chin but that didn't work either so he tossed the sheet into the pile of torn newspaper that was now littering the floor around his foot stool.

'It's not trivial. Not to me. Not for us. You know that. But for Chief Brady – and he is not _my_ Chief as you well know – our problem can't be as high a priority as…'

'Liberating ducks from frozen lakes…'

'…saving lives!' She glared at him and was satisfied to see him look a little ashamed. He tried to cross his arms, only succeeding in trapping his right arm in his sling and she couldn't help but smile. She edged across to him on her hands and knees and gently untangled him, lifting herself up on to her knees to kiss him on the cheek.

'Kate, I'm willing to weather the storm if you are but if you choose not to take the one course of action available to us, you really need to stop stressing about it. _Que Sera Sera_ as Doris Day sang.'

'Yeah, I know, it's just we've got this far without Gates finding out, I was beginning to relax.' She turned to sit between his legs, resting her head against his thigh. He hadn't complained about having to keep the leg elevated and she knew him well enough to understand that meant it was painful. She closed her eyes as he stroked her hair. There was something so sensual about the feel of his fingers on her head. It always calmed her. She couldn't imagine not working with him. The days when he wasn't with her in the precinct always seemed so long and dull, even if she was really busy. She leant her head back to look up at him and he grinned down and bent forward to kiss her.

'Ouch!' They exclaimed in unison as the pink cast hit her head.

'Sorry, Kate, damn thing keeps getting in the way. It's like Dr Strangelove's artificial arm with a mind all of its own. Don't go. I promise not to hit you again,' he pleaded, cradling the offending limb with the other arm as Kate stood up, rubbing the back of her head.

'I'm just going to get the radio, Castle. I miss _my_ Chief Brady. I need to hear his voice.' She looked down her nose at him, unable to hold in the bubble of laughter that rose at his aggrieved look.

'Chief Brady?'

'You have to say over,' Castle reminded her.

Chief Brady. Over.' She narrowed her eyes at him,

'Detective Beckett? How you doing? Over.'

'We're doing fine thanks, Chief. How about you? Over.' She gave a little nod in Castle's direction to show him she knew perfectly well how to use a radio.

'A little busy but nothing we can't handle. Do you need anything? Over.'

'Actually, I wonder if you might be able to call my precinct for me. I need to get a message to Detectives Ryan and Esposito.' She waited wondering if she might have lost signal. 'Over,' she added, glaring at Castle who had his fist to his mouth trying not to laugh.'

'Sure. As soon as I get back to the office. What's the message? Over.'

Kate looked at Castle for help. She hadn't quite thought it through.'

'Ask them to call McDonald and say don't use the photo.' She nodded. That didn't give away too much to Chief Brady but should be clear enough to Kevin or Javi.'

'Could you ask them to call Peter McDonald at _Heat _magazine and ask him not to use the photo that he took of… at the precinct. Over.' The radio crackled back at her and she met Castle's eyes. 'Over?' She repeated.

'Was that… Did you… Signal breaking… Er, will do, Detective. Ov…' The crackling was replaced by silence.

'Chief Brady? Over,' she tried, but there was no response. 'I hope he got that.'

'Yeah, me too. There's nothing more you can do now so come back here and give me a cuddle to make me feel better _'Kate of my consolation'._" He shifted across to make room for her beside him.

'Jeez, Castle, still with the Shakespeare.' She squeezed sideways into the gap, resting her leg on his uninjured one.

'It's so sexy that you know when I'm quoting the Bard,' he said, hugging her to him as she settled against his chest.'

'You're so easy,' she mumbled, nuzzling his neck with her lips.

* * *

Kate kissed his cheek. 'Hey, Sleeping Beauty, we're here.'

Castle opened his eyes a slit and turned to smile at her. 'Already? We just left Southampton.'

'That was two hours ago.'

'Really? Sorry, Kate, I didn't mean to leave you alone.' He stretched as best he could, a twitch of the lips the only sign of his discomfort.

'Don't worry, Castle, I'm not used to such luxury when I'm driving. I like it nearly as much as the Ferrari though, even with the gas peddle on the floor, I couldn't make it go quite as fast.' She grinned and slipped out of the car to get their luggage.

He insisted on carrying his own bag. Their enforced confinement had meant that he'd had no choice but to rest and he was recovering quickly even though, as soon as he was able to put weight on his foot, Kate had struggled to make him stay still. Martha was right; he was a terrible patient. He'd insisted on showing that he could cook with one hand and had only agreed to let Kate make breakfast when she'd had to climb on the kitchen counter to scrap the pancake from the ceiling after his attempt at flipping. And she'd quickly given up trying to stop him take over fire-lighting duties. She'd never had a fireplace in her Manhattan apartments and was secretly glad of his help, particularly as the firelight lulled him into a more relaxed mood when all he wanted to do was to snuggle up with her on the couch to read or take her on at Scrabble where he strove to make the most suggestive words, even at the expense of winning the game.

Chief Brady had dropped by with fresh milk and bread and had guaranteed that Kate could relax and enjoy their stolen few days in the snow when he assured them that he'd passed on the message to Ryan. Her only concern was that Gates might put together the pieces herself if she knew that Castle was also stranded by the snowfall but she shook off her fears. How would the Captain possibly know that Castle was also out of town? He only went to the precinct when Kate was there and, far from missing him, Gates would have been relieved to have a few days without him.

'Ah, the intrepid travellers return. Richard, I'm delighted to see you looking so well but a pink cast? Really? And Kate, my poor dear, you must be exhausted.' Martha greeted them both with hugs, taking Kate's arm to lead her into the loft. 'Put your feet up, darling, and I'll bring you a glass of wine.'

'Hey, I'm the injured one, Mother,' Castle said, dropping his bag.

'Yes dear, but I know what it's like to look after you when you're not well.' She continued on her way to the wine rack.

'Thank you, Martha, but I need to get into the precinct. I'm going to leave him in your tender care.'

'You can't go without me,' squealed Castle.

'I can and I will. How would it look if we turn up together? I'll call and let you know if anything interesting is happening.' She took his face in her hands and kissed him and he wrapped his arm around her.

'But you're coming back later, aren't you? I'm going to need help with my bath.' He dropped his voice and raised his brows.

'I can help you, darling. You've got nothing I haven't seen before,' Martha called from the kitchen. He closed his eyes and shuddered and Kate laughed.

'OK, I'll come back after my shift. In the meantime, you be good and do what your mother tells you.' She gently disengaged herself from his arm, flashing a smile at him on her way to the door.

* * *

Kate checked her phone in the elevator. Four missed calls from Castle just on her short subway journey. He must be missing her as much as she was missing him. Five days trapped together in the Hamptons with only each other for company was a test of their relationship and, except for her anxiety over Castle's accident, it had been magical. Castle's injuries did somewhat curtail some of the activities they'd been looking forward to, but there was a lot to be said for cuddling together in candlelight with no prospect of interruption. All in all, not a terrible way to start the New Year. She'd call him back once she'd got an update from the boys.

Ryan and Esposito were huddled together around Espo's desk. She decided that they were either examining a piece of evidence or looking at porn. Or maybe both at the same time. Kevin looked up and pushed Javi's arm nodding towards Kate. They both glanced towards Gates' office and Javi gestured to her to come to them while Kevin put his finger to her lips. She crept forward wondering what was going on but, before she could reach them, she heard a door open.

'Detective Beckett, how nice to see you back at last. Would you come into my office please? Now, Detective,' Gates' added, before Kate could say anything. With an open eyed stare at the boys, Kate followed Gates into her neat office. Everything in its place, as always, with the unusual addition of a magazine on her desk. Kate read the title with a flutter of concern. The photo adorning the cover was of Gates standing by Kate's murder board.

'Detective, can you explain this to me?' she asked, opening_ Heat _to its centre page spread that featured a collage of photographs.

**Thanks for your reviews. Please let me know what you think and whether you want me to continue.**


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